Maliki Hashimu, a six-year-old boy, was slashed in the throat during a domestic incident and was injured by a sharp weapon.
Maliki Hashimu’s life was saved by THE Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH).The youngster was confined to the intensive care unit (ICU) for thirteen days, and MNH surgeons employed five stages, according to Dr. Juma Mfinanga, chief of the department for emergency medicine and trauma at the hospital. Maliki’s father, Hashimu Kitumbi, thanked President Samia Suluhu Hassan for paying for his son’s medical care and made a plea to community members and stakeholders to support his family in getting by and to help his son get past the horrific experience.
The surgeon confirmed that a full team of physicians and nurses from the Emergency Medical Department (EMD) had to rush at nine in the evening since the youngster was admitted to the hospital on July 15th in a critical condition.
Colleagues brought the critically ill boy from a Goba private hospital where he was staying with his mother.
He had suffered terrible neck injuries from a sharp instrument that had completely destroyed his airway. The medic stated, “He had been cut in the front and back of the neck, losing a lot of blood,” adding that the team’s first priority had been to ensure he could breathe.
He said that they located the cut portion of his airway and joined it with tubes that went to his lungs.After inserting a tube and connecting it to a machine, the doctors noticed that he was breathing, so they proceeded to replenish the blood that had been lost. He went on, “Then we noticed that his heartbeat was coming back and that he was breathing with the assistance of the machine. We then called in ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat) specialists.” The young patient had throat reconstruction, particularly in the region where the sharp object had wounded them, according to ear, nose, and throat specialist Dr. Aslam Nkya.
He added, “The sharp object completely separated the throat,” emphasizing how difficult it would be to get the back area and throat to sit correctly again. “We took him to the operating room and, working with throat doctors, anesthetists, and nurses, we found a device and another way to breathe, which he is now using, called a ‘tracheostomy,'” the man said.
He added that the child would use the device to breathe for two weeks until it was removed, at which point they would be able to speak and breathe normally again. The team had to perform surgery to repair and reconnect the throat in order to return to normal and treat the back neck wound that had reached the backbone.Maliki has been hospitalized for around 24 days, 13 of which were spent in the intensive care unit (ICU), according to Dr. Namala Mkopi, the pediatric intensive care supervisor at MNH. “Maliki was brought to us after we first got to know him while he was at EMD. Before doing another surgery, we first waited for him to stabilize, be safe, and get over the fear of losing his life,” he said.
“We worked with nutritionists to ensure he got a proper diet and physiotherapists to help him strengthen his neck, and walk, and now he can eat, talk, and walk,” the doctor said.Following the event, Maliki was transferred to a private clinic, then to the MNH branch in Mloganzila, and finally, due to the severity of his wounds, to the main institution located in Upanga. He was writhing in anguish, barely breathing, and silent due to severe blood loss, according to the medical staff.